Passengers stranded as Network Rail cuts Merseyrail power

Liverpool's busy electric rail network was suddenly halted for an hour on Friday morning after Network Rail contractors cut through an electricity cable at Sandhills station.

Just before 9am power was lost to signalling, level crossing, lighting and points across the entire network, which stretches from Southport to Chester.

Thousands of passengers were stranded on stationary trains, some of them on the underground loop beneath the city centre, whilst a temporary repair was carried out. Cancellations and severe delays lasted all morning but services returned to normal on Friday afternoon.

Network Rail and Merseyrail both issued statements apologising to passengers and said a full repair was carried out on Friday night when services were not running.

A spokesman for Network Rail said he was unable to give the name of the contractor that cut through the cable.

Your Comments

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come on name and shame. the public has a right to know. this is from a track worker

By s&t

We were trying to get from Birkenhead to Liverpool with bikes to catch the Isle Of Man ferry. We had to cram the bikes and ourselves into taxis which wasn’t cheap or easy! Merseyrail had closed Hamilton Square station so they didn’t have to pay – not impressed!

By Neill Davies

Neil, so what? Hardly the end of the world is it?

By S Cales

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